Universal Living Rosary Association of Saint Philomena (ULRA)

Men Must Cease Offending God, Who Is Already Too Much Offended!

Pope Pius XII issued an Encyclical in 1948 to the whole world calling upon every family and every diocese to make the consecration. In 1952, this same Pontiff consecrated Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in union with the whole Church and had a medal struck to commemorate this monumental dedication. Yet, Sr. Lucia wrote that, although God was pleased with this act, it was incomplete …

“It cannot be complete until every individual, every home, every diocese and every country consecrates itself, after the example of the Holy Father to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.” Sister Lucia

In November 1961, in New Delhi-India, Patriarch Nikodim of the Russian Orthodox Church laid down the conditions of the Kremlin which had to be accepted before they would attend the Vatican Council-II. The Vatican-Moscow Agreement is no secret. In early 1962, the pledge was signed by the Vatican that no hostile declaration would be made by the Council against Russia. Communism was not to be mentioned. And, today, we are told that Communism is dead. Yet, it marches on to engulf the world with its doctrines and iron fist.

We will know that the Immaculate Heart of Mary has Triumphed as She promised, when the Holy Father united with all the Bishops gather in Rome to define the third and final Marian dogma that Our Blessed Mother is the Mediatrix of all Graces and Co-redemptrix of the world. This Triumph will be the outward sign of the consecration of Russia. Then, the Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart will reign on earth as They do in Heaven. Peace will be given to the world.

IT IS THE WILL OF GOD!

The Holy Ghost is God. The Blessed and ever-virgin Mary is His Immaculate Spouse. Of Mary, there can never be enough! What is given to Her is given to Him!

O Mary conceived without Original Sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee and for those who do not have recourse to thee, especially for the enemies of Holy Mother the Church.

The name of Lucifer is LEGION. He is constantly changing his name and his image, but his indelible mark remains unchanged: hatred of the Church, hatred of the just and hatred of the Immaculate Mother of God. The Holy Ghost is the principle of the life of the Church and, therefore, the source of Her holiness and Her unity. Disunion from this life results in death. Arrogant and disciplined by an inhuman mystique, the enemy applies methodically, point-by-point, his plan of extermination. Mary the Immaculate is our direct way to Jesus Christ. She is the weapon of conquest with which to establish the reign of Jesus Christ universally from one end of the earth to the other! Nothing must sorrow the Holy Ghost quite as much as the mediocrity of we who are vowed to His Spouse. Embracing the Blessed Virgin Mary, the principle dogmas of our Faith are read, grasped, loved and believed. Our Blessed Mother contained and contains the Gospel which She offers to us through the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary! She is the fountain of grace which is poured out upon us through her powerful Sacramentals of the Holy Rosary and the Scapular of Mount Carmel. True Christians can be recognized by their IMMENSE love for the Mother of God, but nothing short of IMMENSE! The Immaculata will impart to us a deep love for Her Divine Spouse and obtain for us the fullness of His Gifts.

We are on all sides surrounded and pressed by the spirit of the world. Never in any other Age has the hostile spirit of the world risen up so mightily against the Kingdom of the Holy Ghost, Holy Mother the Church. Never has apostasy from the faith been more general, nor presumption more extreme, nor hatred and jealousy between nations more ferocious. Our Age is identified by sin against the Holy Ghost. In this Age, a religion, peculiar to itself, is here. The worship of the devil has affected apostasy from the truth and confusion of the mind. Ours is an Age of spiritual darkness, lies, godlessness and despair.

Sin is the evil which surpasses all other evils put together, destroying our union with God and man, annulling our claims to future happiness, rendering us victims of eternal misery and deranging the harmony which should exist between nature itself and the human soul. Owing to our want of thought, sin reigns everywhere in all shapes of corruption and disorder. Its dominion is universal, extending through all the paths and avenues of society, infecting every state and condition, defiling each Age, and tainting alike both men and women. Sin is the rejection of God’s authority, our positive refusal to submit to His Commandments, an act of downright rebellion against Him. The ingratitude which it implies is the blackest of all ingratitude – total disregard for a father, benefactor, lover and friend. By sin, we positively trample His mercies and His kindness under our feet. We may form our idea of the atrocity of any crime by the weight and nature of the punishments which are inflicted because of it. When our first parents sinned, God visited them with the severest penalty. He converted His Paradise of delights into a vale of tears; and His promise of immortality, He changed to a sentence of death.

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About the ‘rights of man’ – as they are called – ¬the people have heard enough!

IT IS TIME WE SHOULD HEAR ABOUT THE RIGHTS OF GOD!

Quote from the Encyclical letter, TAMETSI, of Pope Leo XIII

The Name of God is not hallowed as It should be, if It is not hallowed publicly and so¬cially. Our Lord’s Kingdom is meant to come, not only in individual souls and in Heaven but on earth, through submission of States and Na¬tions to His rule. The Catholic is not a being who shuts himself up in an oratory occupied exclusively with his own soul and takes no in¬terest in the world. Catholics must never relinquish the struggle for God’s Rights. Let him never be resigned to the dethronement of Christ the King. The dethronement of Jesus Christ the King is a crime! We come into union with Our Lord, not as isolated individuals, but as members of a supernatural organism, the Mystical Body of Christ. Through Baptism, we are incorporated into this organism of which Christ is the invisible Head. All members of this organism are united battling for the Divine Order of the world. The supernatural life is not the life of a soul, but the life of a Member of Christ, composed of soul and body, occupying a place in an organic unity destined to mold the world for Christ. We must affirm unflinchingly that this Supernatural Grace is infinitely superior to every nation and every race. The violent attack of today upon this Supernatural Life of the world must be countered with an energetic defense. Let all good men unite and form an immense association of action and prayer. As we have seen the REVOLUTION launched by the declaration of the Rights of Man and the social expulsion of Jesus Christ, may we see the same Revolution come to an end by the universal recognition of the RIGHTS OF GOD and of the duties of the human race to its Savior and King!

“The claim to withdraw the public life of States and Nations from subjection to God and His Law is the dominant error and capital crime of this century.” Cardinal Pie 1880

Catholics succumb to the lure of Christ’s enemies largely because they are not trained for the real struggle in the world. They display a lamentable lack of cohesion and piti¬able want of enthusiasm for Christ’s interests. Everywhere, Satan combats and seeks to eliminate the Supernatural Life of Grace and participation in the Life of the Blessed Trinity. Satan’s act of rebellion was a refusal to depend on the Blessed Trinity for his happiness and perfection. By that act, he not only forfeited the Life of Grace but declared war on it. All the frightful energy, then, of Satan’s hatred is specially directed against the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the priesthood and the Church as the living, authoritative, and permanent Teaching Authority strengthened by God’s own power and taught by the Spirit of Truth, Who willed and or¬dered, under the gravest penalties that its teachings should be received as if they were His own. Pope Leo XIII, in the Encyclical, SATIS COGNITUM, writes: “… it must not be supposed that It is only to be yielded in relation to dog¬mas of which the obstinate denial cannot be disjoined from the crime of heresy. But, further, it is to sincerely and firmly assent to doctrines which, though not defined by any solemn pronouncement of the Church, are by Her proposed to belief, as divinely revealed in Her common and universal teaching and which the Vatican Council declared are to be believed with Catholic and divine faith … We are bound absolutely to worship God in that way which He has shown to be His Will. We beg and beseech each one for the sake of his eternal salvation, to consider it a sacred obligation of conscience never in the least to deviate from what the Apostolic See has enjoined in this matter.”

If Jesus Christ be excluded, human rea¬son is left without its greatest protection and illumination. Belief in Christ will not be preserved true and genuine if not supported and protected by belief in the Church which is the pillar and ground of truth. His command to hear His words in the words and commandments of the Church is meant for the men of all times and all places. All attempts to dislodge this teaching and truth from the rock of faith, sooner or later, lead the individual and community to moral destruction. Christian marriage, the foundation of the Christian Fam¬ily, as the Symbol of the union of Christ and His Mystical Body, is ONE AND INDISSOLUBLE.

“Prefer absolutely nothing to the Love of Christ.” Rule of St. Benedict

The fundamental doctrine of Natural¬ism or Rationalism is the supremacy of human reason which, refusing due submission to the Divine and Eternal Reason, proclaims its own independence. The great error of this Age is that religion is a matter of indifference and that one religion is as good as another. Such an attitude spells the ruin of all religions, but it is the grav¬est injustice and worst form of insult to the one True Religion. The term liberty is made use of in order to justify abuses and excesses. Modern society, under the influence of Satan, is organ¬ized upon the principle that human nature is of itself divine, that man is God and therefore subject to nobody.

“God reigns visibly on earth, when the Incarnate Son of God rules and the Incarnate Son of God rules, when the rule of His Church is definitely acknowledged.” – Pius XI

“Let us unite in mind and heart launching a counter attack on this universal evil that truth may, at length, triumph over error and virtue over vice and this, through confident recourse to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and continual use of her heavenly weapons, the Holy Rosary and Brown Scapu¬lar. Victorious over Satan in the very first instant of Her Immaculate Conception, may she show forth her power over this wicked movement, which We clearly see to be ani-mated with the spirit of revolt, and with the incorrigible perfidy and hypocrisy of Satan and his fellow demons. Let us implore the help of St. Michael, Prince of the heavenly host, who hurled those rebels down to Hell, and of St. Joseph, the Spouse of the Most Holy Virgin and Patron and Protector of the Catholic Church. Under their protection and the persevering prayer of the faithful, may God mercifully come to the help of the human race, exposed to so many dangers! – Pope Leo XIII, 1884

“God governs the world but Prayer governs God Himself!” St. John Chrysostom

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You sent me some books, The Stations of the Cross that I distributed in 3 Churches. One of those was at St. Philip Neri. There, I gave this book to a lady. I saw her come into the church once in a while. I offered her the book after the Mass at 11:15 on the First Sunday of Lent. I spoke to her about The Stations of The Cross and the great help that brings to our souls to do it especially during Lent. She took it and went home. Then, I saw her the next day at the 12 noon Mass and she was doing the Stations of the Cross. It made me very happy. To make a long story short, I saw her doing it daily.

Two weeks before the Holy Week, I offered the book, Reign with Christ. She took it and told me very emotionally, “Luisa, you have no idea how much you helped me with the ‘The Station of The Cross’ book. I am meditating on it every day.” It touched me very deeply and brought me closer to the Lord.

She continued, “I went to pray very close to the Tabernacle. I wasn’t doing this for a long time. I was breaking away from my faith because I have had many problems (she recently lost her husband). Now, I can tell you my faith is very strong. I trust more the Lord and I feel that I need to pray more and I feel good doing it now.”

For a long time she had been looking for a 2 bedroom apartment. Her brother is very sick. He is confined to his bed and needs help. She had been spending a lot of time and money on applications in looking for it, without any success. One day, when she was praying to the Lord close to the Tabernacle, it came to her head so clearly to go to visit her brother. She said that was Divine inspiration. She felt it and went to visit him and, among his mail, she found an application for a two bedroom apartment. She completed the form, sent it out and he got the apartment.

She is now attending Mass and receiving Communion daily. She said that she is a different person. She is evangelizing to her daughters, son and her sister. She wants to bring them closer to the Lord (I don’t remember if she is evangelizing to her brother). She asked me to send by mail every new book. She will be moving in May to Syracuse with her brother.

She got the 2 bedroom apartment and the rent is not too high. She feels full of faith and wants to help her brother more than ever. She said that the great faith that she is feeling and experiencing is beautiful. She has a new life, a new vision and is focusing to be a better Christian. She told me all of that very emotionally. She loves the book, ‘The Stations of The Cross’ and she treasures it.

I am very happy for her. I told her that it is the Lord that works in amazing ways and He wants her very close to Him. He is the only one that she can thank for that beautiful conversion and to you for that book. I hope that I didn’t bore you. But, I needed to tell you that beautiful testimony and conversion through the great book, ‘The Stations of The Cross’

Now, I let you know one of the fruits of your work. God wanted you to know about it.

Sincerely,

Luisa – NY, USA

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All the splendors of participation in Divine Life, which Grace produces in our souls, are realized in Mary with a prominence, a force and a realism, wholly singular! The Triune God communicated Himself to her in the highest degree possible for a simple creature. Mary’s dignity, according to St. Thomas, “touches on the threshold of the Infinite.”

When Adam, deprived of the state of grace, was driven from Paradise, only one ray of hope illumined the darkness of fallen humanity: “I will put enmities between thee and the woman,” God said to the serpent, “and … She shall crush thy head.” She will always be the spotless and immaculate one belonging wholly to God: whom He will introduce into the circle of His Divine Family by bonds of the closest intimacy with each of the three divine Persons: “Daughter of the Father, Mother of the Son, Spouse of the Holy Ghost.” Mary lived her divine filiation in humble dependence and loving adherence to God’s every desire.

Mary lived not only God’s manifest Will, but His Will of permission, as seen by her loving acceptance of all: the long journey to Bethlehem when She was about to bring into the world the Son of God, the poor humble shelter of the stable, the flight into Egypt by night, the loss of Jesus in the temple, a life of poverty and weariness, and finally the disgrace of the Passion and Death of her beloved Son on Calvary. What an example of humble dependence on God, absolute fidelity to His Will, perseverance in spite of the difficulties and sacrifices She had to encounter!

“Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to Thy Will.”

Mary lived only for God. We never see her influenced by selfish motives or by personal interest; only one thing moved her: the Glory of God and the interests of Jesus and of souls. All of Mary’s greatness and glory are explained in the light of her divine maternity; furthermore, her very existence is explained by her predestination to this high office. We love and honor Mary because She is the Mother of God. Our devotion to her makes our love for God and for Jesus, deeper and more tender. God could make a bigger world or a wider sky, but He could not raise a pure creature higher than Mary, for the dignity of Mother of God is the highest dignity that can be conferred on a creature. No one could ever say more truly than Mary: “I live now, not I, but Christ liveth in me!” Immense, marvelous mystery! With what great reverence, honor and devotion, we should salute Mary, who drives away demons, frees sinners and makes her children rejoice.

When Mary agreed to be the mother of the Savior, She also agreed to become the closest collaborator of His mission. If Jesus is the Father of our souls, Mary is their Mother, for in giving us Jesus, She gave us true life and, later, by offering on Calvary the Life of her Son for our salvation, She brought us forth to the life of divine grace. In all truth, we may address her: “Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our Life, our Sweetness and our Hope!” On earth, Christ’s dearest possession had been His Mother. As co-redemptrix, She procured the life of grace for us; therefore, She is the woman who in the supernatural order gives us life: She is our Mother! God lives in Mary and Mary lives in Him. Mary clothed Him with the substance of her flesh and He clothed her with the Glory of His Majesty. Mary is the most perfect image of Christ truly formed by the Holy Ghost.

O Mary, God has given thee the power to change hearts;
Take mine and transform it!

MAY IS THE MONTH OF MARY, OUR MOTHER.
WHAT GIFT CAN WE GIVE THAT WILL PLEASE HER!

We could offer Mary our will, but it is not conformable to God’s Will. We could offer Mary our intellect, but it is not enlightened. We could give Mary our affection, but it is not pure. Ah! let us offer Mary, our Mother, the Heart of her Divine Son! During the month of May, hasten to bring to Our Blessed Mother the only gift that is sure to honor and please her Immaculate Heart: The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus! In the midst of a godless world, there is but one means of preservation from eternal ruin, one means of perseverance in the great tribulation of life, the Most Blessed Sacrament. Protected by this Shield, the Children of Mary will remain firm in the Faith. In the Holy Eucharist, there is a joy which cannot be described. Jesus in the Tabernacle protects us against all our enemies: against the evil spirit, the world, our wicked passions and evil inclinations. Jesus supports us in our weakness, comforts us in suffering, is our weapon in combat, our refreshment in heat, the food of our souls and our strength in exhaustion.

The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus in the Tabernacle is our Heaven on earth, our riches in poverty, our defense in calumny and crown in misfortune. Jesus in the Tabernacle is our God and our All! Let the flame of our faith be bright and let our confidence be unlimited; but above all, let our love be aglow. Jesus wills to be loved; let us give Him our love! Although we have squandered the powers of our souls and perverted the safeguards of our hearts, Our Savior is ready to receive the shipwreck of humanity if only we will return to Him with sorrow and love. Palaces of this world are inhabited by earthly kings, but within the Catholic Church dwells the King of kings, the Lord of Heaven and earth. What ineffable joy we give the Immaculate Heart of Our Blessed Mother by bringing souls to the Foot of the Altar that She may give to them the Eucharist Heart of her Divine Son! In doing this, we render to God the Father thanksgiving and reparation for the sins of mankind.

In honor and obedience, thanksgiving and petition, entrust your loved ones to Mary through the gift of a special Bouquet of 31 days of Holy Masses. Place on her head a crown of roses empurpled in the Precious Blood of her Divine Son, the Source of all Salvation! A lovely Mass card will be sent out to you for each person you enroll. Let us sacrifice ourselves to hasten the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

SUGGESTED STIPEND DONATION: $5.00 each for Enrollment in the MAY Bouquet of thirty one days of Holy Masses for your Loved Ones: PRINT VERY CLEARLY EACH NAME!

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Make your payment online through PAYPAL / CREDIT CARD at: WWW.PHILOMENA.ORG

If payment by Check / Money Order / Cash, please mail it directly to the address below:

THE LIVING ROSARY, P.O. BOX NO. 1303, DICKINSON, TEXAS – 77591

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Share Your Gift of Faith

For centuries, our cherished Catholic faith has been passed from person to person, parent to child, etc. Each of us carries in our heart a special memory of how God first graced us with the knowledge of the faith and how Our Blessed Mother, Saint Philomena, Venerable Pauline Jaricot and other saints changed our lives and brought us closer to Christ.

In our work in the Universal Living Rosary Association, we see first hand how millions of souls are currently living without that knowledge of God and are living outside of His grace. We have been given a beautiful opportunity to carry out Christ’s work and pass on our faith and blessings to others who would otherwise never be introduced to Our Lord, the Savior of all mankind. Just as we pray for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them, we should also make it a part of our life’s mission to pass on our faith to as many souls as possible who have no one else to pass it on to them, who don’t know Our Lord and His promise of salvation.

This is the box we send out to the foreign Missi4 lb. box @ $53 (in place of $42.70), 20 lb. box @ $95 (in place of $86.25), 1 lb. package @ $22 (in place of $20)7.95. It contains Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, Cord & Oil, Newsletters, Calendars, Catechism books, 2 TAN books, large color prints, lists and encouragement for our Promoters.

Please Click here to Share Your Gift of Faith

Dear Apostles of the Immaculate Heart of Mary,

We are so very deeply grateful for your zeal for souls, prayers and generous donation. The persecution of Christians today is militant and spread throughout the world. Our daily struggle increases as financial and health concerns plague our homes. Many of our children have lost the faith. With your help, we are reaching out to as many as possible with the Pure Heart of Mary, that She may bring us all safely to port in Heaven. May God protect you and give you peace of soul in these troubled times!

Blessing the hour is a wonderful practice: I use this small prayer: “All for Thee, O my Sweet Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary.” This practice gives me peace and strength, and keeps me united with Jesus and Mary all day long.

“Grace is obtained only through prayer … Everything depends on prayer.”
(St. Alphonsus Maria de’ Liguori )

Satan understands this perfectly and wages an endless battle to distract, discourage and derail us from our good intentions to be constant in prayer. The spirit of prayer is the union of our wills to the Will of God. Our purpose must be the Glory of God, rather than the acquisition of favors whether spiritual or physical. How carefully we must preserve high moral ideals which safeguard the purity of our lives. Each one of us bears a heavy responsibility to do battle in the trenches and face the onslaught of the enemy. God’s Glory depends upon the salvation of souls. We must begin with ourselves. Sanctification must be our goal. True love rises above creation and is steeped in God: In Him, for Him and through Him. Such love of neighbor embraces ALL: the good and the bad, friends and enemies. Today, the evil spirit does not wait, but deliberately works quickly. We must do the same. We cannot stop our efforts for any reason whatsoever. We must continue to give without limit, even to the outpouring of our blood, if necessary. Our goal is the sanctification of all souls through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, even unto the end of the world. One by one, Decade by Decade, we can conquer the world for Christ!

If you are able to distribute any of our leaflets, prayers cards, a Calendar or newsletter to others, we are happy to send them to you, free of charge. May God reward your zeal and the sacrifices you make for souls!

I remain, one with you, in the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

PATTI MELVIN, Director – ULRA

Let us pray for one another.

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Thank God, I reached Sibi on April 9th at 1 p.m. When I ordered my train ticket, I requested to be given the lower or middle berth as it is difficult for me to go to upper berth. But when I got in the train on the 8th at 7 p.m., I found my reservation was for upper berth. Then, there was a Muslim family who said to me, “Go to your berth and stay.” It was very difficult for me but I had to, and during night I came down twice and then went up. It was the worst train journey of about 18 hours.

Fr. Amir had sent Bro. Shahzad to pick me up from the station. At night, there was a new problem of countless mosquitoes. They attacked like an army of troops. Due to this, the first night, I could not sleep till 5 a.m. The next day, Father gave me the mosquito killer spray but it did not work properly and still there were mosquitoes.

Can you remember, you had once asked me to contact the bank about purchasing a car on instalments and I had applied for it to the Bank Al-Habib. An officer called me and they are willing to give me a car. I had this conversation on April 8, the day I was to travel and there was no time to ask you for permission, so I told him about my travel and asked him to contact me on 17th upon my return from Quetta.

Now, please give me your advice: should I contact him or not? They will need a down payment (he will give detail about the amount) and then a monthly instalment for three or four years according to our agreement.

Travel without a proper vehicle is very difficult due to constant back ache. There is an annular tear at L3L4 and canal stenosis. The spinal doctor recommends rest and surgery. I cannot rest so long as there are souls to reach with Our Lady’s Living Rosary. Please pray for me. God bless you!

Afzaal – PAKISTAN

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After lunch, Catechist Gul Sher took me to Bishop Hatinga Colony. We visited the surrounding Christian homes to spread the Living Rosary message and then enrolled new members.

Fr. Farhan had invited me to visit different areas of Multan. On 13th, I attended the morning Mass at Most Holy Redeemer Cathedral. Fr. Yousaf Sohan gave me time to explain the purpose of the Living Rosary and, with the help of Sr. Firdous and Sr. Sofia, I enrolled new members and gave them the Decade Cards, Rosaries, Medals, booklets and other devotional items.

On the 14th, I visited the Dominican Middle School and Saeed colony where the people gathered in the church to hear about the Living Rosary mission. I was invited by Fr. Naveed, OP, Dominican Formation House, to have a meeting with the Seminarians, On 15th, Fr. Farhan took me to Good Shepherd School, Gulraiz Town where I was invited by Sr. Nasira, the principal. Father started the session with a prayer and Sr. Nasira welcomed both of us.

At all the places, new members were enrolled and Decade cards, Sacramentals, booklets, holy pictures and printed materials in English and Urdu were distributed. Fr. Farhan was very thankful to the Living Rosary for my visits and he gave a ‘Thank You’ letter also.

I also visited many places in Karachi but, due to some health concerns and laptop technical problems, I could not send you the pictures. I will send you the photos at the earliest. In the evening, I left for Faisalabad. Thank you for your prayers and support!

AFZAAL – PAKISTAN

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All the splendors of participation in Divine Life, which Grace produces in our souls, are realized in Mary with a prominence, a force and a realism, wholly singular! The Triune God communicated Himself to her in the highest degree possible for a simple creature. Mary’s dignity, according to St. Thomas, “touches on the threshold of the Infinite.”

When Adam, deprived of the state of grace, was driven from Paradise, only one ray of hope illumined the darkness of fallen humanity: “I will put enmities between thee and the woman,” God said to the serpent, “and … She shall crush thy head.” She will always be the spotless and immaculate one belonging wholly to God: whom He will introduce into the circle of His Divine Family by bonds of the closest intimacy with each of the three divine Persons: “Daughter of the Father, Mother of the Son, Spouse of the Holy Ghost.” Mary lived her divine filiation in humble dependence and loving adherence to God’s every desire.

Mary lived not only God’s manifest Will, but His Will of permission, as seen by her loving acceptance of all: the long journey to Bethlehem when She was about to bring into the world the Son of God, the poor humble shelter of the stable, the flight into Egypt by night, the loss of Jesus in the temple, a life of poverty and weariness, and finally the disgrace of the Passion and Death of her beloved Son on Calvary. What an example of humble dependence on God, absolute fidelity to His Will, perseverance in spite of the difficulties and sacrifices She had to encounter!

“Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to Thy Will.”

Mary lived only for God. We never see her influenced by selfish motives or by personal interest; only one thing moved her: the Glory of God and the interests of Jesus and of souls. All of Mary’s greatness and glory are explained in the light of her divine maternity; furthermore, her very existence is explained by her predestination to this high office. We love and honor Mary because She is the Mother of God. Our devotion to her makes our love for God and for Jesus, deeper and more tender. God could make a bigger world or a wider sky, but He could not raise a pure creature higher than Mary, for the dignity of Mother of God is the highest dignity that can be conferred on a creature. No one could ever say more truly than Mary: “I live now, not I, but Christ liveth in me!” Immense, marvelous mystery! With what great reverence, honor and devotion, we should salute Mary, who drives away demons, frees sinners and makes her children rejoice.

When Mary agreed to be the mother of the Savior, She also agreed to become the closest collaborator of His mission. If Jesus is the Father of our souls, Mary is their Mother, for in giving us Jesus, She gave us true life and, later, by offering on Calvary the Life of her Son for our salvation, She brought us forth to the life of divine grace. In all truth, we may address her: “Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our Life, our Sweetness and our Hope!” On earth, Christ’s dearest possession had been His Mother. As co-redemptrix, She procured the life of grace for us; therefore, She is the woman who in the supernatural order gives us life: She is our Mother! God lives in Mary and Mary lives in Him. Mary clothed Him with the substance of her flesh and He clothed her with the Glory of His Majesty. Mary is the most perfect image of Christ truly formed by the Holy Ghost.

O Mary, God has given thee the power to change hearts;
Take mine and transform it!

MAY IS THE MONTH OF MARY, OUR MOTHER.
WHAT GIFT CAN WE GIVE THAT WILL PLEASE HER!

We could offer Mary our will, but it is not conformable to God’s Will. We could offer Mary our intellect, but it is not enlightened. We could give Mary our affection, but it is not pure. Ah! let us offer Mary, our Mother, the Heart of her Divine Son! During the month of May, hasten to bring to Our Blessed Mother the only gift that is sure to honor and please her Immaculate Heart: The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus! In the midst of a godless world, there is but one means of preservation from eternal ruin, one means of perseverance in the great tribulation of life, the Most Blessed Sacrament. Protected by this Shield, the Children of Mary will remain firm in the Faith. In the Holy Eucharist, there is a joy which cannot be described. Jesus in the Tabernacle protects us against all our enemies: against the evil spirit, the world, our wicked passions and evil inclinations. Jesus supports us in our weakness, comforts us in suffering, is our weapon in combat, our refreshment in heat, the food of our souls and our strength in exhaustion.

The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus in the Tabernacle is our Heaven on earth, our riches in poverty, our defense in calumny and crown in misfortune. Jesus in the Tabernacle is our God and our All! Let the flame of our faith be bright and let our confidence be unlimited; but above all, let our love be aglow. Jesus wills to be loved; let us give Him our love! Although we have squandered the powers of our souls and perverted the safeguards of our hearts, Our Savior is ready to receive the shipwreck of humanity if only we will return to Him with sorrow and love. Palaces of this world are inhabited by earthly kings, but within the Catholic Church dwells the King of kings, the Lord of Heaven and earth. What ineffable joy we give the Immaculate Heart of Our Blessed Mother by bringing souls to the Foot of the Altar that She may give to them the Eucharist Heart of her Divine Son! In doing this, we render to God the Father thanksgiving and reparation for the sins of mankind.

In honor and obedience, thanksgiving and petition, entrust your loved ones to Mary through the gift of a special Bouquet of 31 days of Holy Masses. Place on her head a crown of roses empurpled in the Precious Blood of her Divine Son, the Source of all Salvation! A lovely Mass card will be sent out to you for each person you enroll. Let us sacrifice ourselves to hasten the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

SUGGESTED STIPEND DONATION: $5.00 each for Enrollment in the MAY Bouquet of thirty one days of Holy Masses for your Loved Ones: PRINT VERY CLEARLY EACH NAME!

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Make your payment online through PAYPAL / CREDIT CARD at: WWW.PHILOMENA.ORG

If payment by Check / Money Order / Cash, please mail it directly to the address below:

THE LIVING ROSARY, P.O. BOX NO. 1303, DICKINSON, TEXAS – 77591

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Share Your Gift of Faith

For centuries, our cherished Catholic faith has been passed from person to person, parent to child, etc. Each of us carries in our heart a special memory of how God first graced us with the knowledge of the faith and how Our Blessed Mother, Saint Philomena, Venerable Pauline Jaricot and other saints changed our lives and brought us closer to Christ.

In our work in the Universal Living Rosary Association, we see first hand how millions of souls are currently living without that knowledge of God and are living outside of His grace. We have been given a beautiful opportunity to carry out Christ’s work and pass on our faith and blessings to others who would otherwise never be introduced to Our Lord, the Savior of all mankind. Just as we pray for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them, we should also make it a part of our life’s mission to pass on our faith to as many souls as possible who have no one else to pass it on to them, who don’t know Our Lord and His promise of salvation.

This is the box we send out to the foreign Missi4 lb. box @ $53 (in place of $42.70), 20 lb. box @ $95 (in place of $86.25), 1 lb. package @ $22 (in place of $20)7.95. It contains Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, Cord & Oil, Newsletters, Calendars, Catechism books, 2 TAN books, large color prints, lists and encouragement for our Promoters.

Please Click here to Share Your Gift of Faith

Dear Members, Benefactors and Apostles,

We are told to cast all our cares upon God, for He cares about us. What great consolation these words should bring to our innermost souls! We need to keep them in our hearts and recall them to mind the moment they are needed. They will increase our faith, arouse our spiritual vigor and secure for us that victory which we must gain in order to possess even a small part of the peace of God in our souls. We must cast not only a part of our cares upon God, but ALL cares without exception! We can never know with positive certainty that the salvation of our souls will be secured. The very thought of this can make us tremble. Examining our conscience and seeing the sins of our past, we might be tempted to despair.

God’s Mercy is exalted above His Justice. After making a sincere Act of Contrition and a devout Confession, we must then cast our salvation upon that Mercy which is never withheld when asked for with humility and sincerity. This should be followed with sacramental Communion. You may say, “I am sure to repeat these sins again.” This is a lie of the evil one and a deceit of our own weakness.

Fidelity today, wins Grace for tomorrow! Those who speak in this negative way, yield to temptations before they come. This is a form of despair. We are commanded most sternly and positively NEVER to despair of our salvation at any time, in any place, nor under any circumstances. Care of our bodies, our human life in this world, with all that belongs to it, gives us great concern. Christians and Pagans think and act as if life in this world is our all and that success, honor, wealth and social position once secured here, without any thought of eternity, allows man to die in peace. When earthly goods, health, and independence are lost, many turn against God and lose their faith, simply because they did not and do not cast their cares upon the Lord. God knows what is best for us. If we are careless about our duties to God, do not obey the laws of our holy religion, follow the ways of the world and feel ashamed to acknowledge courageously that we are Catholics, then we know the world has nearly overcome us.

It is time then to be strict in our duty to pray! If we are to save our souls, we must pray! We need not make long prayers, nor do we have to offer them in church. But, we must launch out into the deep. That is, we must separate ourselves from attachments and affections of the earth. It will be most profitable if we can single out one virtue of which we stand in need, and make that special virtue the subject of our prayers, thoughts and efforts for weeks, months or years, if necessary, until we gain it. Perseverance is, after all, the test of genuine prayer! Do not mind how long you have prayed and do not weary though your progress be small, God will always reward your perseverance in prayer. Multitudes today are without God, without Christ. They will not follow Him out to the desert, will not listen to His words, or ponder upon them and will not ask for the Grace to believe and be filled with Truth. In pride, in deluded self-satisfaction, in the bustle of life, in the entanglements of passion or business, they suffer life to run on in a half-hearted way, desiring Truth but never coming to the knowledge of it. Be vigilant amid the numerous dangers and temptations by which you are surrounded! Let the light of Faith be not darkened.

As Christians, we must manifest the Faith in all its luster and might. May our Faith shine in the world as Christ shone to men! It is not we who work but Christ Who works in us. Our Holy Catholic Faith is the source of our greatest happiness even while we are upon earth.

During these days between Easter and Pentecost, we pray to the Holy Spirit with longing and expectation, asking Him to help us strive to be like Christ Who went about doing good to all He encountered. Know that you are never alone. When God seems the farthest from you, that is when He is the closest. Your sufferings and prayers are needed that our mission in the bosom of Holy Mother the Church may be strengthened and completed. We remember you, your family (living and departed), and all of your needs, spiritual, physical and material, each day at the Holy Altar.

I impart to all of you, my priestly blessing:

+ In the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.

Fr. IVAN KOLODIY
Byzantine Rite, Greek-Catholic Church, UKRAINE

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I am sitting here in jail now for one full month and have not been told anything except they will get me into court whenever they can. It seems to me that the letters I have sent out are being destroyed. I have written to 5 contacts that regularly and in a timely way always answered my mail, and have had no reply from any of them. The request forms I write to the officers about my mail are unanswered. I have not seen or talked to a lawyer or court official since being returned to jail. I am asking you and everyone at the Living Rosary to keep me in your prayers. May the Lord continue to have His Will done in all the aspects of my life.

I continue to pray my Decade and I pray also the whole Rosary each day. I have no Rosary, no chaplain, no prayer book, nothing! There are no religious services available here. If you reach me, please send me spiritual reading materials and the Dedicated Decades. God continues to bless me daily and I am thankful for all that I experience each day, even sitting here in this jail because I know that I am never alone. Our Lord Jesus Christ is with me every step of the way and Our Holy Mother Mary protects and directs me, as I seek her Son, Our King, in every situation. I also realize there are those in the world who are in a much worse situation than the one I am in here.

Whether free in society or locked up, I will remain loyal and faithful to Our Lord and Our Holy Mother, Mary.

Your brother in Jesus, Mary and Joseph,

Lee – GA, USA

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(1) Sts. Peter & Paul Church, Japthikarani – Fr. Devanesan;

(2) Infant Jesus Church, Palayamkottai – Fr. Visuvasa Arockiya Raj

(3) St. Antony’s Church, Vandavasi – Fr. Antony OMI

(4) St. Teresa of Infant Jesus, Pallikonda – Fr. Bernard Velankanni

(5) St. Bernard Church, Ammaguda – Fr. Samala Michael

(6) Holy Spirit Church, Thiruvalankadu – Fr. John Louis.

After the ceremonial blessing of the Brown Scapulars, about 300 members were invested with Our Lady’s Garment of Grace. A total of 280 new members were enrolled in the Living Rosary. Ave Maria!

Dhanaraj and Ruban
Chennai, South India

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All the splendors of participation in Divine Life, which Grace produces in our souls, are realized in Mary with a prominence, a force and a realism, wholly singular! The Triune God communicated Himself to her in the highest degree possible for a simple creature. Mary’s dignity, according to St. Thomas, “touches on the threshold of the Infinite.”

When Adam, deprived of the state of grace, was driven from Paradise, only one ray of hope illumined the darkness of fallen humanity: “I will put enmities between thee and the woman,” God said to the serpent, “and … She shall crush thy head.” She will always be the spotless and immaculate one belonging wholly to God: whom He will introduce into the circle of His Divine Family by bonds of the closest intimacy with each of the three divine Persons: “Daughter of the Father, Mother of the Son, Spouse of the Holy Ghost.” Mary lived her divine filiation in humble dependence and loving adherence to God’s every desire.

Mary lived not only God’s manifest Will, but His Will of permission, as seen by her loving acceptance of all: the long journey to Bethlehem when She was about to bring into the world the Son of God, the poor humble shelter of the stable, the flight into Egypt by night, the loss of Jesus in the temple, a life of poverty and weariness, and finally the disgrace of the Passion and Death of her beloved Son on Calvary. What an example of humble dependence on God, absolute fidelity to His Will, perseverance in spite of the difficulties and sacrifices She had to encounter!

“Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to Thy Will.”

Mary lived only for God. We never see her influenced by selfish motives or by personal interest; only one thing moved her: the Glory of God and the interests of Jesus and of souls. All of Mary’s greatness and glory are explained in the light of her divine maternity; furthermore, her very existence is explained by her predestination to this high office. We love and honor Mary because She is the Mother of God. Our devotion to her makes our love for God and for Jesus, deeper and more tender. God could make a bigger world or a wider sky, but He could not raise a pure creature higher than Mary, for the dignity of Mother of God is the highest dignity that can be conferred on a creature. No one could ever say more truly than Mary: “I live now, not I, but Christ liveth in me!” Immense, marvelous mystery! With what great reverence, honor and devotion, we should salute Mary, who drives away demons, frees sinners and makes her children rejoice.

When Mary agreed to be the mother of the Savior, She also agreed to become the closest collaborator of His mission. If Jesus is the Father of our souls, Mary is their Mother, for in giving us Jesus, She gave us true life and, later, by offering on Calvary the Life of her Son for our salvation, She brought us forth to the life of divine grace. In all truth, we may address her: “Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our Life, our Sweetness and our Hope!” On earth, Christ’s dearest possession had been His Mother. As co-redemptrix, She procured the life of grace for us; therefore, She is the woman who in the supernatural order gives us life: She is our Mother! God lives in Mary and Mary lives in Him. Mary clothed Him with the substance of her flesh and He clothed her with the Glory of His Majesty. Mary is the most perfect image of Christ truly formed by the Holy Ghost.

O Mary, God has given thee the power to change hearts;
Take mine and transform it!

MAY IS THE MONTH OF MARY, OUR MOTHER.
WHAT GIFT CAN WE GIVE THAT WILL PLEASE HER!

We could offer Mary our will, but it is not conformable to God’s Will. We could offer Mary our intellect, but it is not enlightened. We could give Mary our affection, but it is not pure. Ah! let us offer Mary, our Mother, the Heart of her Divine Son! During the month of May, hasten to bring to Our Blessed Mother the only gift that is sure to honor and please her Immaculate Heart: The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus! In the midst of a godless world, there is but one means of preservation from eternal ruin, one means of perseverance in the great tribulation of life, the Most Blessed Sacrament. Protected by this Shield, the Children of Mary will remain firm in the Faith. In the Holy Eucharist, there is a joy which cannot be described. Jesus in the Tabernacle protects us against all our enemies: against the evil spirit, the world, our wicked passions and evil inclinations. Jesus supports us in our weakness, comforts us in suffering, is our weapon in combat, our refreshment in heat, the food of our souls and our strength in exhaustion.

The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus in the Tabernacle is our Heaven on earth, our riches in poverty, our defense in calumny and crown in misfortune. Jesus in the Tabernacle is our God and our All! Let the flame of our faith be bright and let our confidence be unlimited; but above all, let our love be aglow. Jesus wills to be loved; let us give Him our love! Although we have squandered the powers of our souls and perverted the safeguards of our hearts, Our Savior is ready to receive the shipwreck of humanity if only we will return to Him with sorrow and love. Palaces of this world are inhabited by earthly kings, but within the Catholic Church dwells the King of kings, the Lord of Heaven and earth. What ineffable joy we give the Immaculate Heart of Our Blessed Mother by bringing souls to the Foot of the Altar that She may give to them the Eucharist Heart of her Divine Son! In doing this, we render to God the Father thanksgiving and reparation for the sins of mankind.

In honor and obedience, thanksgiving and petition, entrust your loved ones to Mary through the gift of a special Bouquet of 31 days of Holy Masses. Place on her head a crown of roses empurpled in the Precious Blood of her Divine Son, the Source of all Salvation! A lovely Mass card will be sent out to you for each person you enroll. Let us sacrifice ourselves to hasten the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

SUGGESTED STIPEND DONATION: $5.00 each for Enrollment in the MAY Bouquet of thirty one days of Holy Masses for your Loved Ones: PRINT VERY CLEARLY EACH NAME!

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Make your payment online through PAYPAL / CREDIT CARD at: WWW.PHILOMENA.ORG

If payment by Check / Money Order / Cash, please mail it directly to the address below:

THE LIVING ROSARY, P.O. BOX NO. 1303, DICKINSON, TEXAS – 77591

Click here to download a full color .pdf version of this article

Share Your Gift of Faith

For centuries, our cherished Catholic faith has been passed from person to person, parent to child, etc. Each of us carries in our heart a special memory of how God first graced us with the knowledge of the faith and how Our Blessed Mother, Saint Philomena, Venerable Pauline Jaricot and other saints changed our lives and brought us closer to Christ.

In our work in the Universal Living Rosary Association, we see first hand how millions of souls are currently living without that knowledge of God and are living outside of His grace. We have been given a beautiful opportunity to carry out Christ’s work and pass on our faith and blessings to others who would otherwise never be introduced to Our Lord, the Savior of all mankind. Just as we pray for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them, we should also make it a part of our life’s mission to pass on our faith to as many souls as possible who have no one else to pass it on to them, who don’t know Our Lord and His promise of salvation.

This is the box we send out to the foreign Missi4 lb. box @ $53 (in place of $42.70), 20 lb. box @ $95 (in place of $86.25), 1 lb. package @ $22 (in place of $20)7.95. It contains Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, Cord & Oil, Newsletters, Calendars, Catechism books, 2 TAN books, large color prints, lists and encouragement for our Promoters.

Please Click here to Share Your Gift of Faith

With admirable calmness, Jesus forgot Himself in the midst of His Agony, to recommend Mary to the virgin disciple, who would henceforth sustain and console Her to the end of Her days. He filled the heart of the beloved St. John full to overflowing with the tenderest and most generous love that ever a son felt for this admirable Mother: “Son, behold thy Mother!” And with St. John representing all the faithful, He filled the heart of Mary with an overflowing love for mankind, so that her Maternity became, in a certain degree, as unlimited as the Divine Paternity itself: “Woman, behold thy son!”

The Rosary is the wonderful blending of Mother and Son, the Gospel transformed into prayer, the Life of Jesus through the eyes of Mary, His Mother. When we pray the Rosary, we have the words of Heaven on our lips, the love of Mary in our hearts, and the Life of Christ in our thoughts. Christ is the Heart of the Rosary, the very heart of His most Blessed Mother!

Cherish the Holy Rosary, wield it in battle, pray it often, love it deeply!

Consolation is something completely accidental to our mission on earth, faithfulness is essential. We turn to the Mother of God, who was Full of Grace to find life everlasting. “The grace of the Passion and Death of Our Savior, Jesus Christ, is distributed in three steps: From God to Christ, Christ to the Virgin, and from the Virgin to us.” (Pope Leo XIII)

Peace be to you! Christ has Risen! Alleluia!

Our prayers are¬ with you both day and night.

PATTI MELVIN, Director – ULRA

Let us pray for one another.

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(By Father J.J. Thilges, SVD – 1951)

Do you desire to know Christ more fully, long to love Him more than you do now and wish to find salvation in Him and through Him? God has put you on earth that you may save your soul. Your soul is your greatest treasure! It is your better self. It cannot die because it is a spirit. It is made in the image and likeness of God. It will live as long as God lives. Men of good will rejoice that they are destined to live forever, because they realize their eternity is to be spent with God in a state of unending happiness. But, what will eternity hold for us? Will it be Heaven or Hell? We must enter by the narrow gate, for wide and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many there are who enter that way.

What do you think of your soul? Do you know its value?

Christ has esteemed and loved your soul so much that He was crucified and died for its salvation. It is more precious than all the possessions and glory of this world. Whatever else you may possess, when you come to die, you must leave it all behind; your soul alone you take with you to appear before the Judge Who will reward or punish you, either with eternal glory in Heaven or eternal shame in Hell, according to your conduct on earth. Here on earth, we are on probation. It is a testing ground for eternity.

The majority of men today live as if there was no eternity, no Heaven to gain and no Hell to escape. They are spiritually asleep until death surprises them. In order to be saved, you must do three things:

First, believe what God has revealed,
Second, keep the Commandments,
Third, receive the Sacraments.

Faith alone does not save you. The Father has loved you and gave His only Son to redeem you; the Son has loved you because He died on the Cross for your salvation; and the Holy Ghost loves you because He is at work in your soul to sanctify you. See then, how precious your soul is in God’s Eyes.

Mary became the spiritual Mother of all the redeemed at the Incarnation. She is also your Mother. Acknowledge her as your Mother, and you will find Christ. Mary is your way to Christ. St. John received Mary as his Mother not only for himself but also for all of us. The Mother of Christ is the Mother of all Christians. After you have found Mary, and through Mary, Christ, your Savior, you are on the secure path toward Salvation. It was by Mary that our salvation began. We must go to Mary and pray to her if we are to be given the grace necessary to find the True Church of her Divine Son and be saved.

Christ conferred upon the Apostles the power to teach, govern and sanctify. “Simon Peter, feed My lambs!” These words were addressed to Peter alone and they conferred upon him the primacy of jurisdiction over the entire Church.

As Christ Himself was the Good Shepherd, so then Peter became the supreme shepherd in Christ’s Church. He is to act as Christ’s vicar on earth. Today, Christianity is hopelessly divided. Of all the Churches in existence, the Catholic Church alone has these four Marks; hence It alone is Christ’s True Church. The four Marks of the Church by which It may be identified and easily recognized are:

Unity, Holiness, Catholicity and Apostolicity

The Catholic Church and It alone possesses the Mark of Holiness; Christ, Its Founder, is Holiness itself. Christ instituted the Seven Sacraments which were to serve mankind as the seven Channels of Grace and Sanctification.

Catholic means universal. The Catholic Church is Apostolic. It teaches the same doctrine which the apostles taught, It inherited the same mission or authority of uninterrupted succession of pastors and the apostolicity of the Church is theirs alone.

Christ is still upon earth. He is with His own. He lives in the Tabernacles of the Catholic Church. “He who is not with Me, is against ME!” Religious indifferentism is positively evil! It is wrong to say that every man is free to embrace and profess any religion, guided by the light of reason. We must not be surprised to see the Church persecuted, calumniated and misrepresented, for Christ, her Founder, declared that She would be: “They have persecuted Me, and they will persecute you too. If the world hates you, know that it hated Me first.”

Let us remain steadfast and cling always and fearlessly to our Catholic roots of DOGMA, DOCTRINE and DEVOTION!

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In 1965-1966, I flew in Vietnam, for a year. The aircraft I flew was the largest the Army had assigned since WW-II. Unfortunately, our legislators, in their infinite wisdom, decided the airplane should be assigned to the Air Force NOT the Army. I completed my lonely year in Vietnam and anxiously awaited my return to family life with my young family. I was home for less than a year before the Army decided they had an urgent need for my Infantry Airborne Aviator combat experience. They assigned me to return to Vietnam and fly an experimental airplane. The concept for the use of the airplane was to apply its innate silent capability with a dark colored paint to be near invisible at night. I was to fly this experimental airplane at very slow speed and very low attitude in search of enemy forces. It was very dangerous but, if it worked as hoped for, we could call for artillery fire and NOT be seen or heard by the enemy located.

As a husband of a wonderful wife and father, at that time, of 4 great children, I prayed a lot that God would watch over them and me. God saved my life on my very last 9th combat mission. I found a large group in an area where there was to be no one. I requested artillery fire and, after a very long wait (fuel was very low), the first round was fired. I saw the artillery round hit and explode. I saw bodies being blown upward. I told the Artillery Controller to fire a full barrage and I turned to leave. Oh, my God, fog had moved in and I could no longer see the ground! God guided me as I said this little prayer: “Dear God, please let me see my wife and children one more time before You take me.”

Very soon after the prayer, I saw a very small hole in the fog off to my left side. There was a small blue light (a sign of an airfield). Without hesitating, I pulled open a device on the airplane that made it fall straight down like an elevator! All of a sudden, it occurred to me: When do I close the spoilers? All I see is the fog around me? Somehow, the spoilers closed and I was directly over the approach end of an airfield. I landed the plane and rolled out. There was my airfield hangar! I was home safely. That was around 3.00 AM; I was shaking like a leaf in a tornado. I knew I was going to die but God had other ideas … another mission someday. I went to my quarters around 3:30 AM. I was still shaking uncontrollably. A few hours later, I went to my office. One of our aircraft maintenance chiefs came to me. He said, “Sir, do you know how much fuel that airplane took to refill the tank?” I said, “I don’t know but the gauge read “empty”!!! He responded, “Yes Sir, it took more gas than the airplane handbook says it will hold.”

I said: “That’s impossible! How could you put more fuel in the tank than it would hold?” He responded to me: “Sir, the Lockheed Technical Representative said: You must have not only emptied the fuel tank but also the fuel line to the tank. The airplane was BONE DRY.” I was re-assigned the next day to Headquarters U.S. Army, Vietnam to be the Project Manager for the follow-on airplane. Our two airplanes were returned to Lockheed, Sunnyvale, CA, two days later.

I felt bad for days. God saved my life after I killed all those people. I was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Bronze Star for my actions. That was the 9th time that I am aware of that God had saved me from sure death.

The 10th time was in 2005 when I encountered encephalitis. I spent 13 days in a coma and was not expected to survive. A Lady’s voice called to me, “Please get up and do something PRODUCTIVE.” I concluded that Our Blessed Mother wanted me to do something for her. I am still doing that something = making Rosaries. In fact, a couple of weeks ago, I completed my 14,000th Mission Rosaries made, prayed and donated to Catholic Charity.

God bless the Universal Living Rosary Association and ALL who support it!

Major Andrew Bringuel (USA Ret.)
A Soldier of God and Country

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All the splendors of participation in Divine Life, which Grace produces in our souls, are realized in Mary with a prominence, a force and a realism, wholly singular! The Triune God communicated Himself to her in the highest degree possible for a simple creature. Mary’s dignity, according to St. Thomas, “touches on the threshold of the Infinite.”

When Adam, deprived of the state of grace, was driven from Paradise, only one ray of hope illumined the darkness of fallen humanity: “I will put enmities between thee and the woman,” God said to the serpent, “and … She shall crush thy head.” She will always be the spotless and immaculate one belonging wholly to God: whom He will introduce into the circle of His Divine Family by bonds of the closest intimacy with each of the three divine Persons: “Daughter of the Father, Mother of the Son, Spouse of the Holy Ghost.” Mary lived her divine filiation in humble dependence and loving adherence to God’s every desire.

Mary lived not only God’s manifest Will, but His Will of permission, as seen by her loving acceptance of all: the long journey to Bethlehem when She was about to bring into the world the Son of God, the poor humble shelter of the stable, the flight into Egypt by night, the loss of Jesus in the temple, a life of poverty and weariness, and finally the disgrace of the Passion and Death of her beloved Son on Calvary. What an example of humble dependence on God, absolute fidelity to His Will, perseverance in spite of the difficulties and sacrifices She had to encounter!

“Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to Thy Will.”

Mary lived only for God. We never see her influenced by selfish motives or by personal interest; only one thing moved her: the Glory of God and the interests of Jesus and of souls. All of Mary’s greatness and glory are explained in the light of her divine maternity; furthermore, her very existence is explained by her predestination to this high office. We love and honor Mary because She is the Mother of God. Our devotion to her makes our love for God and for Jesus, deeper and more tender. God could make a bigger world or a wider sky, but He could not raise a pure creature higher than Mary, for the dignity of Mother of God is the highest dignity that can be conferred on a creature. No one could ever say more truly than Mary: “I live now, not I, but Christ liveth in me!” Immense, marvelous mystery! With what great reverence, honor and devotion, we should salute Mary, who drives away demons, frees sinners and makes her children rejoice.

When Mary agreed to be the mother of the Savior, She also agreed to become the closest collaborator of His mission. If Jesus is the Father of our souls, Mary is their Mother, for in giving us Jesus, She gave us true life and, later, by offering on Calvary the Life of her Son for our salvation, She brought us forth to the life of divine grace. In all truth, we may address her: “Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our Life, our Sweetness and our Hope!” On earth, Christ’s dearest possession had been His Mother. As co-redemptrix, She procured the life of grace for us; therefore, She is the woman who in the supernatural order gives us life: She is our Mother! God lives in Mary and Mary lives in Him. Mary clothed Him with the substance of her flesh and He clothed her with the Glory of His Majesty. Mary is the most perfect image of Christ truly formed by the Holy Ghost.

O Mary, God has given thee the power to change hearts;
Take mine and transform it!

MAY IS THE MONTH OF MARY, OUR MOTHER.
WHAT GIFT CAN WE GIVE THAT WILL PLEASE HER!

We could offer Mary our will, but it is not conformable to God’s Will. We could offer Mary our intellect, but it is not enlightened. We could give Mary our affection, but it is not pure. Ah! let us offer Mary, our Mother, the Heart of her Divine Son! During the month of May, hasten to bring to Our Blessed Mother the only gift that is sure to honor and please her Immaculate Heart: The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus! In the midst of a godless world, there is but one means of preservation from eternal ruin, one means of perseverance in the great tribulation of life, the Most Blessed Sacrament. Protected by this Shield, the Children of Mary will remain firm in the Faith. In the Holy Eucharist, there is a joy which cannot be described. Jesus in the Tabernacle protects us against all our enemies: against the evil spirit, the world, our wicked passions and evil inclinations. Jesus supports us in our weakness, comforts us in suffering, is our weapon in combat, our refreshment in heat, the food of our souls and our strength in exhaustion.

The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus in the Tabernacle is our Heaven on earth, our riches in poverty, our defense in calumny and crown in misfortune. Jesus in the Tabernacle is our God and our All! Let the flame of our faith be bright and let our confidence be unlimited; but above all, let our love be aglow. Jesus wills to be loved; let us give Him our love! Although we have squandered the powers of our souls and perverted the safeguards of our hearts, Our Savior is ready to receive the shipwreck of humanity if only we will return to Him with sorrow and love. Palaces of this world are inhabited by earthly kings, but within the Catholic Church dwells the King of kings, the Lord of Heaven and earth. What ineffable joy we give the Immaculate Heart of Our Blessed Mother by bringing souls to the Foot of the Altar that She may give to them the Eucharist Heart of her Divine Son! In doing this, we render to God the Father thanksgiving and reparation for the sins of mankind.

In honor and obedience, thanksgiving and petition, entrust your loved ones to Mary through the gift of a special Bouquet of 31 days of Holy Masses. Place on her head a crown of roses empurpled in the Precious Blood of her Divine Son, the Source of all Salvation! A lovely Mass card will be sent out to you for each person you enroll. Let us sacrifice ourselves to hasten the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

SUGGESTED STIPEND DONATION: $5.00 each for Enrollment in the MAY Bouquet of thirty one days of Holy Masses for your Loved Ones: PRINT VERY CLEARLY EACH NAME!

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Make your payment online through PAYPAL / CREDIT CARD at: WWW.PHILOMENA.ORG

If payment by Check / Money Order / Cash, please mail it directly to the address below:

THE LIVING ROSARY, P.O. BOX NO. 1303, DICKINSON, TEXAS – 77591

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Share Your Gift of Faith

For centuries, our cherished Catholic faith has been passed from person to person, parent to child, etc. Each of us carries in our heart a special memory of how God first graced us with the knowledge of the faith and how Our Blessed Mother, Saint Philomena, Venerable Pauline Jaricot and other saints changed our lives and brought us closer to Christ.

In our work in the Universal Living Rosary Association, we see first hand how millions of souls are currently living without that knowledge of God and are living outside of His grace. We have been given a beautiful opportunity to carry out Christ’s work and pass on our faith and blessings to others who would otherwise never be introduced to Our Lord, the Savior of all mankind. Just as we pray for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them, we should also make it a part of our life’s mission to pass on our faith to as many souls as possible who have no one else to pass it on to them, who don’t know Our Lord and His promise of salvation.

This is the box we send out to the foreign Missi4 lb. box @ $53 (in place of $42.70), 20 lb. box @ $95 (in place of $86.25), 1 lb. package @ $22 (in place of $20)7.95. It contains Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, Cord & Oil, Newsletters, Calendars, Catechism books, 2 TAN books, large color prints, lists and encouragement for our Promoters.

Please Click here to Share Your Gift of Faith

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I am Fr. Julio Oo, a diocesan priest, from the diocese of Pekhon, Myanmar. I hope you are well. I met one of the leaders of the group that have great devotion to St. Philomena today and she asked me to share some of the photos they took of their activities. With the holy oil and pictures of St. Philomena, they were able to pray over some mothers that had hard time getting pregnant and later were able to deliver, also some others that were suffering from strange diseases. They were quite successful. We are truly blessed to have some of our parishioners involved in religious promotion. Many thanks for your support and prompt response.

Thank you for sending me my Decade.

Fr. Julio Oo
Bishop’s House
Diocesan Center, Pekhon Diocese 06061
Southern Shan State
MYANMAR.

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Will you embrace whole-heartedly the devotion of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and consecrate to her your entire being? Will you let her fulfill in you her great promise of salvation? Will you let Mary use you to bring others to salvation through her Immaculate Heart? The world will obtain peace only through the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. It is the Will of God, the key to Heaven! By it, we will have peace in our hearts, in our homes, in our country, in the Church and in the world.

God has given over to Mary the special work of mothering the life of grace in us and ruling as our Queen. He has confided to her Heart, the mediation of all the treasures of His heavenly storehouse. Mary by her perfect surrender to God ~ her perfect consecration ~ became full of Grace, perfectly filled with God. By our consecration to Mary, we take on a new sacredness and strive, henceforth, to be only and always used for Mary’s hallowed mission. We pledge ourselves to learn of her, to love her dearly, to ‘spend and be spent’ in her sacred service, to call upon her in all our needs and to trust her absolutely!

The first condition of devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is based upon a true love of Mary. We cannot love someone we do not know, and the sad truth is that all too few know the Woman! We consecrate ourselves not because we are perfect, but rather to become perfect. True devotion is promptitude of WILL; it is a matter of setting one’s own will aside. If we are devoted to the Heart of Mary, it will not matter how we feel or what we want; always we will be instant and eager to be in her sacred service.

Pope Leo XIII speaks to us of the mystery within the mysteries of the Holy Rosary: To Jesus through Mary! When we turn to Mary in prayer, she is able to fulfill uninterruptedly the office she holds before the throne of God as Mediatrix of Divine Grace. The merciful Heart of Mary appears in no other form of prayer so manifestly as the Holy Rosary. Mary’s Heart of love is reaching out across the world to gather people from every corner of the earth to her feet. She has been given the power to give souls to Jesus and Jesus to souls. Total Consecration unlocks the door of her Heart, the living tabernacle of the Most Blessed Trinity. Wherever we find true devotion to the Heart of Mary, there we will find true love of God. Nothing will be more effective today to bring forth the full intensity of Christian life in the world.

Let us sacrifice ourselves to hasten the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary through Total Consecration and the Most Holy Rosary!

Night is closing in, we must act now!

PATTI MELVIN, ULRA Director

Please pray for me!

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Saint Philomena’s Apostolate is a Catholic Homeschooling Group in Ellicott City-MD, which meets 2 days a week at St. Paul’s Church to home-school together. We have 33 families this year and each year we invite all those children who are 10-18 years of age to join the Children of Mary program if they like. This year, we have 24 student members at our school and we meet once a month and do a service project.

Last month, we put together “blessing bags” to give out to the homeless.

This month, we were excited to string Miraculous Medals that the Universal Living Rosary Association provided us. In just under 2 hours, our students and a few enthusiastic parents were able to assemble 1,050 Medals which Mrs. Melvin will send out to the missions! Everyone enjoyed it and felt such a sense of accomplishment when we were finished. This is a fun and simple way to serve God in a group. They really enjoyed it. I would highly recommend this project to other Catholic groups.

Thank you Patti! God Bless!
Kelly Molino – MD, USA

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Share Your Gift of Faith

For centuries, our cherished Catholic faith has been passed from person to person, parent to child, etc. Each of us carries in our heart a special memory of how God first graced us with the knowledge of the faith and how Our Blessed Mother, Saint Philomena, Venerable Pauline Jaricot and other saints changed our lives and brought us closer to Christ.

In our work in the Universal Living Rosary Association, we see first hand how millions of souls are currently living without that knowledge of God and are living outside of His grace. We have been given a beautiful opportunity to carry out Christ’s work and pass on our faith and blessings to others who would otherwise never be introduced to Our Lord, the Savior of all mankind. Just as we pray for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them, we should also make it a part of our life’s mission to pass on our faith to as many souls as possible who have no one else to pass it on to them, who don’t know Our Lord and His promise of salvation.

This is the box we send out to the foreign Missi4 lb. box @ $53 (in place of $42.70), 20 lb. box @ $95 (in place of $86.25), 1 lb. package @ $22 (in place of $20)7.95. It contains Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, Cord & Oil, Newsletters, Calendars, Catechism books, 2 TAN books, large color prints, lists and encouragement for our Promoters.

Please Click here to Share Your Gift of Faith

Dear Members, Benefactors and Apostles,

In the Byzantine Liturgical year, there are four major Penitential Seasons: the Great Fast of Lent (40 days), the Apostles Fast (length varies), the Nativity Fast (40 days) and the Dormition Fast (2 weeks). Simple fasting is observed on every Friday of the year. During the Great Fast of Lent, the 8th Sunday before Pascha (Easter) is the last day meat may be taken, and the 7th Sunday before Pascha is the last day dairy products may be taken. Essentially, at this point, Eastern Catholics are eating as vegetarians. For the most part during Lent, only one meal is taken during the day and, on Saturdays and Sundays, two meals are allowed. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, fasting is encouraged for those who are able, and those who cannot, may take bread and water.

This strict Fast is made in reparation for the sins of mankind and to fortify ourselves with the courage and strength that will be needed to take our place with Our Blessed Mother at the foot of the Cross. Christ’s entire Life was directed to its goal, Calvary, the consummation of the mission with which the Father had entrusted Him. The Crucifixion might appear to those looking upon Him as the clearest proof of defeat. Yet, it is no defeat but victory! Mary saw everything: the humiliation and desolation of her Son, the scorn, derision and hate of those calling for His Blood. No human being ever suffered any agony which could even be compared with Mary’s. The sword foretold by Simeon long ago was now a bloody reality: “Thy own soul a sword shall pierce!”

One cannot speak of the “Tragedy” of Calvary because there can be no tragedy in relation to Jesus and Mary. The fulfillment of God’s Will can never be tragic. Tragedy presupposes a blind and cruel fate which is indifferent to man’s suffering. No one can suggest that God did not love the Blessed Virgin. Nevertheless, He did not exempt her from Calvary. It is foolish in a Christian, unpardonably foolish, to think that, if God really loves us, as He does, He will exempt us from the cross, the very sign of a Christian! There are many Christians who flee from the Cross as from the devil; they are ignorant of the Cross and lack any brotherhood whatsoever with Christ. Mary could have remained in the intimacy of her home; her presence did not relieve the suffering and humiliation of Jesus. The Virgin Mary identified herself with her Son, her love made her suffer with Him. She loved Him and love unites. Mary’s love could not stand separation. Even in that terrible moment, She preferred suffering to separation, however great the suffering might be. There is a precise relationship between our capacity to love and to suffer. He who is not capable of suffering is incapable of loving! We love God to the same extent that we love the Cross. Mary stood at the foot of the Cross of her Son participating actively and intimately in the Sacrifice, identifying herself completely with Him and agreeing willingly, like Jesus, to the fulfillment of the Will of the Father. Mary drank the chalice to the dregs as She saw before her eyes the Life of her Son, whom She had carried in her womb, completely extinguished. Mary loved and accepted the Will of the Father even at the cost of the Life of her Son. She did not watch like a helpless soul, her participation was active. She did not beg for mercy for Him, She made no effort to change the course of events, but accepted them all with respect and reverence. Mary gave Him to the Will of the Father, Jesus gave Himself. For this reason, the Church calls Our Blessed Mother, Co-Redemptrix. Mary’s faith was greater and more heroic than any other human being in the world. Pain is not only visited upon those who sin. The innocent suffer also, because we are all members of the Mystical Body of Christ.

“WOMAN, BEHOLD THY SON! SON, BEHOLD THY MOTHER!”

God entrusted to us His very own mother! From all eternity, it is decreed that hers is the extremely important task of applying the fruits of the Redemption to our souls. God’s plan of salvation, magnificent in its simplicity, is unfathomable in all its depth. The apostles gathered around her and She began to be their mother, teaching them, protecting and watching over them. We all have been given a mission, a vocation, in life which must be carefully accomplished. No one can say, “I’ve done my part” and then sit back in self-complacency and comfort. On the contrary, one should always be ready to give more. The last things that Christ saw before His Death were His own ruin, His mother’s sorrow, His one surviving disciple and the triumph of His enemies. Consolation is something accidental; faithfulness is essential! Grace is eternal life already begun and the Virgin Mary possessed it in all its fullness: Mary was “Full of Grace”! To find her is to find Life: the Life of Grace, the Life that She carried in her womb. The Church teaches that devotion to Our Lady is a sign of assurance of salvation, and She does not say this lightly. St. Bernard said, “God willed that we should have nothing which does not pass through the hands of Mary.”

Pope Leo XIII in his Encyclical, FUCUNDI SEMPER, points out that, “Every grace that this world receives is ordinarily distributed in three steps: from God to Christ, from Christ to the Virgin, and from the Virgin to us.” Even when we rebel and let go of her hand and refuse her help, still She does not desert us. We need Our Lady’s maternal love to protect, defend and console us. She loves us and will not abandon us, because we are her children. Let us make haste to Calvary in the company of our sorrowful Mother living her eternal FIAT in life and in death. Have mercy on us, O Mother of God, Our Life, Our Sweetness and Our Hope!

You are remembered at the Sacred Altar during this holy Season of Lent. We pray for your courage and strength to carry your crosses with love, patience and resignation for the salvation of souls. May you achieve the very highest degree of sanctity and find deep meaning and God’s Peace in your lives!

I impart to all of you, my priestly blessing:

+In the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.

Fr. IVAN KOLODIY
Byzantine Rite, Greek-Catholic Church, UKRAINE

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I am sending our Annual Activity Plan for you to see our involvement in the Spiritual and Apostolic Program for this year 2016, as well as the photos taken during our St. Philomena feast day at Wati Parish in Nubu and the photos of our juniors and senior members of ULRA in the Diocese of Aitape.

Patti, I have met our Rev. Bishop Otto Separy for a piece of land to build our ULRA Centre in the Diocese and the Bishop gave us permission to set up our Centre. When our Centre is complete, we will invite you and some of the ULRA members to come to Aitape, Papua New Guinea for the opening ceremony.

Please pray for our financial funding either in cash or kind. May God bless you!

Clarice Samgur
Sandaun Province – PAPUA NEW GUINEA

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The rational man needs the Mass to pay Almighty God the debt of homage and adoration he owes Him. The grateful man needs the Mass to pay his debt of thanksgiving. The sinful man, and who among us is without sin, needs the Mass to propitiate God’s Justice and to pay his debt of satisfaction.

The needy man needs the Mass, that praying with Jesus Christ and through Him, he may offer a prayer that is worthy of being heard and, thus, discharge his duty and debt of petition.

At the hour of death, the Masses you have heard will be your greatest consolation. Every Mass will go with you to judgment and plead for pardon. At every Mass, you can diminish the temporal punishment due to your sins. Assisting devoutly at Mass, you render the Sacred Humanity of Jesus, the greatest homage. He supplies for many of your negligences and omissions. He forgives you all the venial sins you are determined to avoid. He forgives you all the unknown sins you have never confessed. The power of Satan over you is diminished.

By hearing Mass, you afford the Souls in Purgatory the greatest possible relief. One Mass heard by you, during life, will be of more benefit to you than many offered for you after death. Holy Mass preserves you from many dangers and misfortunes that would otherwise befall you. You shorten your Purgatory by every Mass and win for yourself a higher degree of glory in Heaven. At Mass, you kneel amidst the multitude of Angels who are present at the adorable Sacrifice with reverential awe. You receive the priest’s blessing which Our Lord Himself ratifies in Heaven. You are blessed in your temporal goods and affairs.

Nihil Obstat: P. L. Biermann, Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: X George Cardinal Mundelein, Archbishop of Chicago

The names you send for individual enrollment for the Sacred Masses during the Lenten Season and Easter Octave will be placed upon the Altar. Fr. Ivan Kolodiy and all the priests you have helped in Ukraine will offer these Masses. Suggested donation for each enrollment is $5. Mass cards will be provided for the persons enrolled. Please PRINT the names CLEARLY:

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Make your payment online through PAYPAL / CREDIT CARD at: WWW.PHILOMENA.ORG

If payment by Check / Money Order / Cash, please mail it directly to the address below:

THE LIVING ROSARY, P.O. BOX NO. 1303, DICKINSON, TEXAS – 77591

Click here to download a full color .pdf version of this article

Share Your Gift of Faith

For centuries, our cherished Catholic faith has been passed from person to person, parent to child, etc. Each of us carries in our heart a special memory of how God first graced us with the knowledge of the faith and how Our Blessed Mother, Saint Philomena, Venerable Pauline Jaricot and other saints changed our lives and brought us closer to Christ.

In our work in the Universal Living Rosary Association, we see first hand how millions of souls are currently living without that knowledge of God and are living outside of His grace. We have been given a beautiful opportunity to carry out Christ’s work and pass on our faith and blessings to others who would otherwise never be introduced to Our Lord, the Savior of all mankind. Just as we pray for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them, we should also make it a part of our life’s mission to pass on our faith to as many souls as possible who have no one else to pass it on to them, who don’t know Our Lord and His promise of salvation.

This is the box we send out to the foreign Missi4 lb. box @ $53 (in place of $42.70), 20 lb. box @ $95 (in place of $86.25), 1 lb. package @ $22 (in place of $20)7.95. It contains Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, Cord & Oil, Newsletters, Calendars, Catechism books, 2 TAN books, large color prints, lists and encouragement for our Promoters.

Please Click here to Share Your Gift of Faith

Through the Power of God and during one and a half years of hard work, prayers, pennies and help from many sources, the beautiful St. John the Baptist Church is completed. Divine Providence was with us. I was able to find a good construction company who bid the job at half the price of other companies. During the construction of the Church, we had our Sacred Masses in an outside tent. We roasted in the summer and froze in the winter. The tent was taken down on January 14, 2016 and we moved inside the Church, warm and wonderful! Without the support of the Living Rosary, it would not have been possible to accomplish this in the midst of war. We continue always to pray for all the donors whose names will be embossed in the memorial plaque which will be placed at the entrance of the church. The parishioners will see your names and pray for all of you. On January 24, Bishop Ihor Vozniak, Archbishop of Lviv, consecrated the church. It may look a bit plain right now but, in time, there will be additional icons and a special place of honor will be given to St. Philomena. How great must be our confidence in God’s Power, Wisdom and Mercy!

The Catholic Church is proud of Her Rites. They are harmonized into one beautiful, polyphonic symphony for the Glory of God. The real fullness of Catholic worship cannot be understood without taking in the Rites of the East and West as one great whole. The Church is fundamentally one. This is explained in the Catechism: All members profess the same Faith, partake of the same Sacraments and are united under one and the same visible head, the Pope. The most widespread Rite of the Eastern Church is the Byzantine, and the most widespread Rite of the Western Church is the Roman. The prayers of the Divine Liturgy contain all Marian theology: Mary’s divine motherhood, her perpetual virginity, her Queenship and her mediation. The most frequent invocation in the Sacred Byzantine Liturgy is the oft repeated: Lord, have mercy!

We Christians, even the most devout, do not possess that confidence which excludes all anxiety and doubt. Fear not, our repeated imperfections, weaknesses, serious faults and relapses will not discourage God. The more miserable we are, the greater claim we have to His Mercy. “I do believe Lord, help my unbelief.” Lack of confidence, whatever its cause might be, does us much harm and deprives us of great blessings. All too often, we give way to discouragement which is more pernicious than sin itself. We must entrust our lives to the Divine Master Who has given us everything: the Treasures of His Heart, His Love, His Life and the very last drop of His Most Precious Blood! Ordinary hope is lost by despair. The hope we must have is heroic hope: Confidence fortified by Faith! Our confidence in God must be unshakable: firm, stable and constant! Such was the confidence of Job. Stricken by every possible misfortune, he did not allow himself to be discouraged: no murmuring was mixed with groaning. “Although the Lord should kill me, I will trust in Him!” St. Martin fell into the hands of robbers who would have killed him, but his hope and confidence was in the Lord. Some pray only in the time of suffering, others pray fervently, but do not persevere. Unshakable firmness in prayer is the first characteristic of confidence: Let us be confident in God, not in ourselves!

Without Grace, we can produce nothing in the supernatural order. The Apostles labored all night to catch fish, and caught nothing. But, when they received the Master into their boat, they cast their nets and attained an undeniably miraculous catch, so much so that their nets nearly broke. We must not count on our efforts, but go forward with the sure conviction that all depends upon God. We must believe blindly upon His merciful and fatherly Love and His omnipotent goodness. Confident souls obtain God’s graces! God will provide for our temporal necessities. Amidst material difficulties, even anguishing ones, we must not become disturbed. With complete certainty, we must hope to receive from the Divine Hands of God that which is necessary to maintain our lives. Behold the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor do they reap; consider the lilies of the field, they labor not, neither do they spin. If we seek first the Kingdom of God and His Justice, all else will be given to us. Without any doubt, Divine Providence will distribute exactly the aid necessary for each one of us. For great evils, God sends great remedies! We must not trouble ourselves about the future. Do today what you can to satisfy your obligations, counting without hesitation on the aid of Divine Providence for tomorrow’s needs. To be afflicted about the future, constitutes a lack of confidence in God and wounds His loving Heart. We must conform our will in everything to His Adorable Will. It is not enough to await God’s assistance; we must ask Him for it! The Master has unhesitatingly shed His Precious Blood for us. How could He refuse us the graces that are absolutely necessary and that He Himself merited for us on Calvary?

Jesus knows our miseries, He sees them. His Heart takes pity on them. How poorly we understand the Heart of Jesus! We must confide our mortal miseries to His Merciful Heart! The soul without confidence, outrages the Lord. The confident soul, who knows its weaknesses and its own nothingness, unfailingly wins His favor. Christian souls, employ all the means at your disposal to acquire confidence! Frequently make acts of confidence in God’s Mercy. In suffering and in danger, raise your hearts and souls to the Heart of God!

We pray for your families, your courage in the difficult days which lie ahead, the gifts of wisdom, hope and confidence in God that all of you may remain faithful unto death to Our Crucified Savior Who has sacrificed His Life in reparation for our transgressions. We beg from God that His most profound benedictions may rest upon you and your family throughout the New Year.

I impart to all of you, my priestly blessing:
+ In the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.

Fr. IVAN KOLODIY
Byzantine Rite, Greek-Catholic Church, UKRAINE

Click here to download a full color .pdf version of this article

Please find enclosed two filled forms, Minutes of Meeting of St. Philomena’s Group in Njinikom Hospital and their testimonies, and $35 with 8 Mass intentions. I thank God for another opportunity He has given me to send you these through the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration at La Crosse. I am sorry this opportunity came abruptly. I had no time to type the Minutes, and their testimonies.

I have given this Group the wrist cords, since the long cords are not enough. I have given them three Chaplets to pray and then pass them on from member to member to take to their families. Reading through their Minutes, you see the miracles that are happening through the devotion to Saint Philomena’s Cords and Oils.

Thank you immensely, Patti Melvin! Thanks to our Benefactors! Thanks to your Team! May God bless and reward you all! We are praying for you.

With lots of love and prayerful wishes throughout the New Year 2016 and beyond!!!

Sr. Mary Florence Angwe
St. Joseph’s Convent
Shisong – Cameroon

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At length, the culmination of prophecy arrives. The shadow of things to come gives place to the reality, and the angel of God appears in a humble cottage of Galilee to an unknown maiden. He comes not to command but to propose, for God will not take away the freedom of His children. His proposal is this – that She, Mary of Nazareth, shall consent to become the very Mother of the Eternal God Himself. “Behold, thou shalt conceive and bring forth a son; and thou shalt call His name ‘JESUS.’ He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Most High.” There is a pause; then a question; then another pause. At length, She bows Her lovely head as She utters those momentous consenting words: “Behold, the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to Thy word.” At that moment, the Word is made Flesh and dwells amongst us.

God thought so much of Mary that He willed to make the Redemption of men dependent upon Her free consent. If She had not consented then; if, for example, She had said instead, “Lord, I am not worthy” the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity would not have taken flesh in Her. How or when we would have been redeemed, we do not know, nor is it of any importance that we should know, for our fate was safe in Mary’s keeping. To that consent of Hers, we owe Jesus, His Church, His Grace and any hope we have of attaining eternal life. The Redeemer came through Her to the rest of our poor fallen race, and He brought everything that the Faith contains. Almost immediately, the significance of this Truth becomes evident when Mary visits Her cousin, Elizabeth. On the approach of Jesus now living within Mary, the unborn precursor leaps in his mother’s womb. Elizabeth says expressly that this happens at the sound of Mary’s greeting reached her ears. John the Baptist is cleansed from original sin, only because the Savior comes to him through His Mother. Mary exercises, for the first time, Her unique prerogative as the administrator of the Treasury of Heaven: the Dispenser of all Graces.

At Bethlehem, both Shepherds and Magi find – not Jesus alone but “Mary with the Child” or “the Child with His Mother.” Later, in the Temple, Jesus and Mary are united in sorrow. He will be “a sign which men will refuse to acknowledge”; Her soul will “have a sword to pierce it.”

At Nazareth, the Hidden Life is spent with Mary and ends on the note of Mary: “His Mother kept in Her heart the memory of all this.” The Public Life of Jesus begins, is even advanced, through Mary: “There was a wedding-feast at Cana in Galilee; and Jesus’ Mother was there.” Likewise, the Public Life ends on the note of Mary. “His Mother … had taken Her stand beside the Cross of Jesus.” For the Sacrifice of Redemption, Mary provided Victim and Priest, Blood and Altar. Moreover, in the words of Pope Benedict XV:

“With Christ suffering and dying, She too suffered almost unto death. For man’s salvation, She abdicated Her rights as mother over Son. In order to appease Divine Justice, She immolated Him as far as it lay within Her power, so that we may justly say that She has, with Christ, redeemed the world.”

The work of Redemption, begun and consummated dependently on Mary, continues as long as grace is applied to the souls of men. Mary gave us the very source of grace; She continues now to obtain every grace for us. “Mary,” said Pope Benedict XIV, “is, as it were, a celestial stream, by which all heavenly gifts and graces are borne to men.” “Nothing whatever of that magnificent treasure of grace which Christ has won for us,” continues Leo XIII, “nothing is imparted except through Mary.” And, concludes Benedict XV: “The graces of every kind which we have received from the treasures of Redemption are administered by Her hands. Graces of every kind.”

Therefore, Sanctifying Grace, the life of the soul is given to us through Mary. Hence, supernatural life comes to the soul from God through Mary, just as natural life comes to the body from God through natural mothers. Mary is in truth and reality the Mother of the souls of men. We are related to Her in the supernatural order just as actually as we are related to our earthly mothers in the natural order. If it is true that we can do no good work of ourselves towards our salvation without God’s Grace, and that no Grace is given except through Mary, it must certainly be true that we can do no good work of ourselves towards our salvation apart from Mary.

Pondering these sublime truths of theology, Mary’s Child understands that they will benefit him little unless he tries to reduce them to practice in his own spiritual and apostolic life. He knows that his desire to bring Mary to the world as the infallible means of winning the world to Jesus is utterly impossible unless he has Mary in his heart. Without Her, he can neither lift himself to God nor do God’s work; with Her, he becomes capable of attaining a marvelous degree of sanctity and of possessing unbelievable power over the souls of others.

At the moment of the Annunciation, God viewed the human race through Mary; She was our representative and, as such, God became Incarnate within Her. The spiritual life of a Christian is simply the growth within him of the life and spirit of Christ. Because it is a work of grace, this new “Incarnation” does not take place without Mary. She is really the Mother of Christ; She is really the Mother of the Christian. For the daily growth of the Christ-life in the individual soul, Her consent and motherly care are just as necessary as they were when He took flesh at Nazareth. Realizing this, the Child of Mary deliberately and whole-heartedly acknowledges Mary’s position as his representative at Nazareth and on Calvary.

It was through Mary that all his actions became the actions of a Christian; Acknowledgement of Her position implies that every action of his should bear some impress of gratitude towards Her. An act of consecration once repeated would never be sufficient ratification of the things Mary did on his behalf. Our actions are only rendered supernaturally meritorious because of the grace bestowed through Mary; therefore, every action should contain some expression of the soul’s dependence on Her.

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The rational man needs the Mass to pay Almighty God the debt of homage and adoration he owes Him. The grateful man needs the Mass to pay his debt of thanksgiving. The sinful man, and who among us is without sin, needs the Mass to propitiate God’s Justice and to pay his debt of satisfaction.

The needy man needs the Mass, that praying with Jesus Christ and through Him, he may offer a prayer that is worthy of being heard and, thus, discharge his duty and debt of petition.

At the hour of death, the Masses you have heard will be your greatest consolation. Every Mass will go with you to judgment and plead for pardon. At every Mass, you can diminish the temporal punishment due to your sins. Assisting devoutly at Mass, you render the Sacred Humanity of Jesus, the greatest homage. He supplies for many of your negligences and omissions. He forgives you all the venial sins you are determined to avoid. He forgives you all the unknown sins you have never confessed. The power of Satan over you is diminished.

By hearing Mass, you afford the Souls in Purgatory the greatest possible relief. One Mass heard by you, during life, will be of more benefit to you than many offered for you after death. Holy Mass preserves you from many dangers and misfortunes that would otherwise befall you. You shorten your Purgatory by every Mass and win for yourself a higher degree of glory in Heaven. At Mass, you kneel amidst the multitude of Angels who are present at the adorable Sacrifice with reverential awe. You receive the priest’s blessing which Our Lord Himself ratifies in Heaven. You are blessed in your temporal goods and affairs.

Nihil Obstat: P. L. Biermann, Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: X George Cardinal Mundelein, Archbishop of Chicago

The names you send for individual enrollment for the Sacred Masses during the Lenten Season and Easter Octave will be placed upon the Altar. Fr. Ivan Kolodiy and all the priests you have helped in Ukraine will offer these Masses. Suggested donation for each enrollment is $5. Mass cards will be provided for the persons enrolled. Please PRINT the names CLEARLY:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Make your payment online through PAYPAL / CREDIT CARD at: WWW.PHILOMENA.ORG

If payment by Check / Money Order / Cash, please mail it directly to the address below:

THE LIVING ROSARY, P.O. BOX NO. 1303, DICKINSON, TEXAS – 77591

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Share Your Gift of Faith

For centuries, our cherished Catholic faith has been passed from person to person, parent to child, etc. Each of us carries in our heart a special memory of how God first graced us with the knowledge of the faith and how Our Blessed Mother, Saint Philomena, Venerable Pauline Jaricot and other saints changed our lives and brought us closer to Christ.

In our work in the Universal Living Rosary Association, we see first hand how millions of souls are currently living without that knowledge of God and are living outside of His grace. We have been given a beautiful opportunity to carry out Christ’s work and pass on our faith and blessings to others who would otherwise never be introduced to Our Lord, the Savior of all mankind. Just as we pray for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them, we should also make it a part of our life’s mission to pass on our faith to as many souls as possible who have no one else to pass it on to them, who don’t know Our Lord and His promise of salvation.

This is the box we send out to the foreign Missi4 lb. box @ $53 (in place of $42.70), 20 lb. box @ $95 (in place of $86.25), 1 lb. package @ $22 (in place of $20)7.95. It contains Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, Cord & Oil, Newsletters, Calendars, Catechism books, 2 TAN books, large color prints, lists and encouragement for our Promoters.

Please Click here to Share Your Gift of Faith

I always keep you in prayers before Our Lord Jesus Christ that He may accompany you in your daily routine. I am so sorry for not being in touch for the past two years. I want you to know that I have been following the Postulancy and the Novitiate Programs with Franciscan Capuchin Brothers. Due to these engagements, communication possibilities like postage and internet services were inaccessible to me because the Communities where I have been are remote from the urban cities.

How are things with your spirituality? I hope you are doing well and I solemnly request you not to forget me and to include me in your prayers that I may persevere in my vocation.

Dear Patti, I was extremely pleased with those good presents which you along with the others rendered to me.

I implore you to assist my pastoral service as you did in the past by sending special Rosaries, Miraculous Medals, Scapulars and other Sacramentals, prayer cards, leaflets and spiritual materials which are an invitation for new Christians who are living around my location (Novitiate).

I visit the new Christians around the rural areas where it takes four hours on foot to reach these places. I am very happy to help them, as this is part of my life. Please pray for me and support me in this Living Rosary Mission.

I send my heartfelt thanks to you. Please give my kindest regard to all our benefactors.

May God bless you!

Yours fraternally,

Brother Mebratu Paulos Gebre
Addis Ababa, Asko – ETHIOPIA

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I apologize for the delay in acknowledging the wonderful parcels sent in October and November 2015 that came in my absence.

With heartfelt gratitude, I render a big thank you and a huge hug to you, Patti! The parcels are full of treasures!!! I am overwhelmed with the inspiring and soul searching prayer cards, special Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals and the “Holiness Through Mary” Book. Most excellent Book! I am really absorbed in Marian Devotions; thanks to you, I have so much to share with others looking through these spiritual materials. The Holy Spirit is really at work with you when you prepare what to send to me. I have shared all the “Novena to the Holy Spirit” Booklets which you sent. There was a person who was looking for this booklet but I had no copy left to give him. Now, you have sent us more copies. The leaflet on “The Holy Name of Jesus” is really touching. I myself have experienced the power that is in the Holy Name of Jesus! Thank you, Patti, for spreading this good news to the whole world. I will do my best to spread this wonderful devotion of The Holy Name of Jesus. If I may beg, could you kindly send me a few more copies of this leaflet, more copies of “The Holiness Through Mary” book. I am reading through it now!!! The Ten Life-Long Resolutions leaflets are beautiful indeed!!! You are leading countless souls to Heaven! Could I have a few more copies of these also? The Jubilee Card of St. Benedict is beautiful too! In fact, all the things in these boxes are very excellent, especially the CD, Consecration of the Family to the Sacred Heart, etc. to mention a few. Thank you very much for all these spiritual materials. May all your intentions and the intentions of all our Benefactors be granted as we say these prayers!

We are praying for all of you. We are united around the Crib in prayer. Merry Christmas!!! Thank You, Jesus, and Mary, Our Immaculate Mother, for Patti Melvin! Thank you, St. Philomena and Pauline-Marie Jaricot for Patti Melvin!!!

Sr. Mary Florence Angwe
St. Joseph’s Convent,
Shisong – Cameroon

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We have 420 Catholic families in our parish belonging to the Lotha tribe. It’s rather a remote center. Our people are by and large poor, but our faithful are fervent in Marian devotion. It will be a great help for our Catholics if you could send Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, and Sacramentals as you did in the past.

Gratefully acknowledging all that you have been to our mission. We assure you our prayers in all that you do.

Fr. George Anthony
Nagaland, INDIA

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Again and again, the Children of Mary are reminded that they must always show forth the spirit of charity which lives in their souls by the ceaseless practice of kindness and gentleness. Often and especially when dealing with the derelict or abandoned classes, this calls for genuine heroism and an outlook that is completely supernatural. It is easy to be kind on occasions; it is difficult to be always kind; it is heroic to be habitually kind towards those who can truthfully be described as vile. Yet, kindness is the only way. Insistence upon discipline repels such people; gentleness and warmth of heart alone attract them and eventually win them over. They often fall again but, with continual kindly help, the falls become ever less frequent. When kindness and gentleness are exercised with supreme patience and perseverance, they always return in the end to the friendship of God.

A kindly attitude outlaws the spirit of criticism. The conduct of many of those encountered during active work seems open to criticism, but he is never the critic. This does not mean that he completely stifles his critical faculty – a procedure which would make him the dupe of every charlatan; but it does mean that he governs that faculty according to the laws of Faith and exercises it only according to the spirit of charity. If he discovers evil, error or defects, he never blames, upbraids, rebukes, censures or condemns; rather, he searches for the good that is always to be found in every character, though it is often half-hidden or ill-expressed. This is itself magnificent training in the practice of charity and is bound to result in rapid progress towards perfection. It demands an attitude of mind that is prepared to love every individual before anything loveable manifests itself and to expect to find beauty before any is visible.

Under no circumstances whatsoever does the Child of Mary depart from the way of gentleness and sweetness, for he knows that to depart from that way will result in harm rather than in good. It is precisely in those cases that seem to call for rebuke that there is greater need for kindness and gentleness. If he is true to his vocation and really trying to reach the most abandoned souls to bring them back to God, he will surely come into close contact with those who seem to be even worse than the ordinary great sinners, superlative in their badness, incarnations or selfishness and personifications of treachery, filled with hatred of God and of a nauseating outlook towards religion. In them, there appears to be not a spark of grace, a trace of softness or a gleam of the spiritual. In them, he knows that Christ is, so to speak, held captive, mocked and crucified again. Therefore, they must be converted; Christ must be freed. There is only one course open; their hard hearts must be melted by the steady and persistent application of the warm flame of charity, declaring itself as kindness, gentleness, patience and understanding.

The law is absolutely invariable, whether they are approaching those inside or outside the Church, the way is the same. The center of the entire scheme is the appeal of one person towards another; the attraction of one soul to elevate another. Prejudice and ignorance by irreligious education of those outside the Church, always yield before an approach made in the spirit of the Good Shepherd. Humility, affection and sincerity which spring from genuine belief succeed when a controversial, overbearing attitude fails. Certainly, they are never resented; on the contrary, they invariably leave a deep impression which ripens to complete conversion.

The ideal after which each one aims is that he be filled to overflowing with the spirit of Mary. He aspires after Her fathomless humility, complete obedience, seraphic sweetness, ceaseless prayer, all-embracing mortification, immaculate purity, perfect patience, celestial wisdom and dauntless love of God and, more than all, Her faith. Thus animated, the Child of Mary is prepared to attempt any and every task, for he knows that in Mary, he may and can do all things. When he is tempted to think that a certain spiritual work is impossible, he asks himself with Mary, “How can this be done?” and, with Her, he repeats that incomparable act of resignation, “Behold, the slave of the Lord” and he knows that the task allotted to him can be accomplished by the over-shadowing of the Holy Spirit.

True Devotion

The apostolate is built on devotion to Mary. The first obligation of every member, the duty that ranks before any other, is practicing a devotion to Mary proportionate to the place She occupies in God’s plan for the sanctification of the souls of men.

There are still many who try to make Catholic doctrine more acceptable to those outside the Church by keeping Mary in the background. Such conduct may be justified by merely human reasoning; it certainly does not accord with the dictates of a prudence based on God’s revelations concerning His Mother. In the light of these, it would be just as sensible to preach Christianity without Christ as Redemption without Mary. For it has been God’s Will that no coming or giving or manifestation of Christ should be without Mary! He is trained to ponder seriously and often the answer to this question: “What does God think of Mary?” He takes himself in spirit to the very first days of creation and listens to the voice of God addressing the Serpent in Eden: “I will put enmities between thee and the Woman, and thy seed and Her seed; She shall crush thy head and thou shalt lie in wait for Her heel.” That is God’s own summary of His plan for redeeming the newly-fallen race of men and, in that divine summary, Mary is set apart alone as the co-worker of Salvation.

That first divine foretelling of the Savior to come is echoed and re-echoed by Prophet after Prophet during all the long years of waiting before the earthly conception of the Messiah. “The Virgin,” “The Virgin and the Child,” “The Woman,” “The Woman and the Child,” “The Queen seated at the right Hand of the King” – so they go on assuring us, again and again, that a Woman is to be closely associated in the work or our saving.

“Behold a Virgin shall conceive and bear a Son,” cries Isaias, “and He shall be called Emmanuel, God with us.”

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Bless me, Father, for I have sinned!

The Sacrament of Penance is an abundant source of consolation and peace to every Christian soul. Confession means always an act of self-denial, as it is essentially an act of penance. Our Heavenly Father forgives the heaviest possible crimes, immediately and unrestrictedly, when asked for mercy in the spirit of humility and contrition. God’s infinite sanctity bars even the slightest compromise with sin. God hates sin infinitely. Hence, reconciliation with God and man is unthinkable so long as man stubbornly adheres to sin.

A good preparation is necessary for Confession. Daily spiritual reading and a careful daily examination of conscience are very important to forming a clear conscience. Pray to the Holy Ghost for light to know your sins, the strength to confess them and the Grace to be truly sorry for them. Strive to go to Confession weekly or at least once a month. If you go every two weeks, you are eligible to gain all the indulgences and graces that are offered through Holy Communion on special Feasts and the offering of particular prayers and Novenas throughout the year, which require Confession within the octave of the completed devotion. Under pain of mortal sin, you must make your Confession at least once in the year and receive Holy Communion during the Easter Season. You should confess your sin, the number of times it was committed and the circumstances under which it was committed, whether alone or with others.

For a good Confession, you must have sorrow for your sins. Contrition is a hearty sorrow for your sins and a firm determination never to commit them again. Sorrow must be interior; it must come from the heart and be felt in the soul. Tears, sighs and exterior signs are not necessary. See your sins to be the greatest of evils, detest them as you would a poisonous snake. You need not weep, sorrow is in the will. Your contrition must be universal: You must be sorry for every mortal sin; if you confess only venial sins, you must be sorry for at least one of them. Contrition must be supernatural, not out of shame, but because you have offended Almighty God and lost Grace and Heaven, and deserve Hell. If you are sorry because you have offended God, the best of Fathers, our loving Redeemer Who is all good, glorious and amiable, your contrition is perfect. Imperfect contrition suffices to make a good confession.

Look upon Christ dying in agony on the Cross; Sin nailed Him to It!

We must have a purpose of amendment to make a good Confession. This is a firm determination to change your life, avoid sin and have a definite resolve to suffer anything rather than commit a mortal sin. If you are resolved to avoid sin, you will be resolved to avoid the proximate occasion of sin – for instance, persons, places or times in which you are faced with temptation to sin. Resolve, always resolve to avoid every deliberate venial sin, for venial sins are the rungs on the ladder that lead to mortal sin! Always perform your Penance in a timely way. Be resolved to make good the wrong you have done. Perhaps, this will be restitution in goods, or in good name, or in soul, or by praying for those you have scandalized.

Confess your sins. Confession must be entire; you must tell all your mortal sins and, if no mortal sin is present, at least one venial sin for which you are truly sorry. Your Confession must be clear, not vague. Give the sin, the circumstances and the number of times it was committed. Consider the Ten Commandments and confess your sins in that order. Be sure not to conceal, diminish or disguise your sins through false shame. Remember the silence of the Confessional is as the silence of the grave. No priest may ever reveal what he has heard in Confession. He may have to undergo torture or death, but he may not utter a single word he has heard in the Sacrament of Penance.

Accept the penance the priest gives you. In Confession, the eternal punishment due to sin is remitted, but the temporal punishment remains in whole or in part. The penance given is for the expiation, in part at least, for the temporal punishment due for your sins, and for the amendment of your life. Never sit, kneel or stand too close to the Confessional as you may inadvertently hear the confession of another.

The priest really does forgive sins in the Confessional. The dominant purpose of Christ is to seek and save sinners. Yes, only God can forgive a man who has sinned against God. But Jesus Christ is God; and the power of forgiving sins which is His, He gave to Peter and to the other Apostles to be used in His Name. “Whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be loosed in Heaven.” (Matt 16:19) “Receive ye the Holy Ghost, whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.” (John 20:22-23)

Christ gave this power to His Apostles and it was a power given to them in their official capacity as ambassadors of Christ, to be passed down through the Ages by apostolic succession, until the end of time. Can a priest forgive his own sin? No, he cannot! He, too, must go to Confession to another priest. The Pope and the bishops go to Confession regularly that their sins may be forgiven. From the beginning of time, there has been absolutely no sin, the remission of which has been refused to penitents by a universal law in the Catholic Church. The Church cannot by any means grant the right of refusing absolution to those who are guilty of sin no matter how great their crimes, provided they are rightly disposed. But, anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Ghost will not be forgiven, for it is morally impossible that he should meet the conditions for absolution. The blasphemy against the Holy Ghost is final impenitence and it frustrates, and is absolutely opposed to the remission of sins. Even God cannot pardon where there is no sorrow for sin. Man has a free will and God will never interfere with or force man’s free will.

Through the Sacrament of Confession, the Holy Ghost will increase our self-knowledge, Christian humility will grow, bad habits will be corrected, spiritual neglect and tepidity will be corrected, the conscience will be purified, the will strengthened, a salutary self-control attained and grace will be increased.

Mortal sin strips our soul of the merits and graces of a life time. Everything is lost by mortal sin. But, how consoling this truth of our holy religion! Meritorious words revive when, through the forgiveness of mortal sin, grace is restored to the soul! All the merits of the pious works performed before the sinner fell while he was in the state of grace, are restored to the soul. God is so Good!!! But, while the soul is dead through mortal sin, it cannot gain one single favor from Heaven. How miserable and unhappy is the state of the sinner in mortal sin!

The amendment of our lives is the surest sign that our Confessions are good. If, since your last Confession you have been guilty of only venial sins, then include a grievous sin of your former life for which you are heartily sorry. In this way, even if your sorrow concerning the faults committed since your last confession should be somewhat wanting, you need not be disquieted about your confession or have doubts about whether you had sufficient sorrow for them. Form the firm resolution of never willingly offending God again.

The Sacrament of Confession was principally instituted for the forgiveness of mortal sin: and every mortal sin committed after Baptism must be confessed. Still, confession of venial sins is highly recommended by the Church as a great means of Christian perfection. By making frequent your confessions, you are exercising watchfulness over yourself and striving after perfection day by day. Through it, you will grow in His Love and His Grace. He that does not go forward in perfection will slip backwards. Here is a sort of model for devotional confession:

“Father, my last confession was a week ago. Since then, I have been slightly angry and have given expression to my feelings in unkind words. I have told three lies in unimportant matters, just to elevate myself in the estimation of others. And I wish to include in this Confession all the sins of my past life, especially the mortal sins I deliberately committed against the Sixth Commandment. I am sorry for these sins I have mentioned and I firmly resolve to avoid them in the future.”

By the Grace of God through frequent and sincere Confessions, may you continually advance in holiness before God and man!

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because I dread the loss of Heaven and the pains of Hell, but most of all because I have offended Thee, my God Who art all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy Grace to confess my sins, to do penance and to amend my life. Amen.

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The rational man needs the Mass to pay Almighty God the debt of homage and adoration he owes Him. The grateful man needs the Mass to pay his debt of thanksgiving. The sinful man, and who among us is without sin, needs the Mass to propitiate God’s Justice and to pay his debt of satisfaction.

The needy man needs the Mass, that praying with Jesus Christ and through Him, he may offer a prayer that is worthy of being heard and, thus, discharge his duty and debt of petition.

At the hour of death, the Masses you have heard will be your greatest consolation. Every Mass will go with you to judgment and plead for pardon. At every Mass, you can diminish the temporal punishment due to your sins. Assisting devoutly at Mass, you render the Sacred Humanity of Jesus, the greatest homage. He supplies for many of your negligences and omissions. He forgives you all the venial sins you are determined to avoid. He forgives you all the unknown sins you have never confessed. The power of Satan over you is diminished.

By hearing Mass, you afford the Souls in Purgatory the greatest possible relief. One Mass heard by you, during life, will be of more benefit to you than many offered for you after death. Holy Mass preserves you from many dangers and misfortunes that would otherwise befall you. You shorten your Purgatory by every Mass and win for yourself a higher degree of glory in Heaven. At Mass, you kneel amidst the multitude of Angels who are present at the adorable Sacrifice with reverential awe. You receive the priest’s blessing which Our Lord Himself ratifies in Heaven. You are blessed in your temporal goods and affairs.

Nihil Obstat: P. L. Biermann, Censor Librorum.
Imprimatur: X George Cardinal Mundelein, Archbishop of Chicago

The names you send for individual enrollment for the Sacred Masses during the Lenten Season and Easter Octave will be placed upon the Altar. Fr. Ivan Kolodiy and all the priests you have helped in Ukraine will offer these Masses. Suggested donation for each enrollment is $5. Mass cards will be provided for the persons enrolled. Please PRINT the names CLEARLY:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Make your payment online through PAYPAL / CREDIT CARD at: WWW.PHILOMENA.ORG

If payment by Check / Money Order / Cash, please mail it directly to the address below:

THE LIVING ROSARY, P.O. BOX NO. 1303, DICKINSON, TEXAS – 77591

Click here to download a full color .pdf version of this article

Share Your Gift of Faith

For centuries, our cherished Catholic faith has been passed from person to person, parent to child, etc. Each of us carries in our heart a special memory of how God first graced us with the knowledge of the faith and how Our Blessed Mother, Saint Philomena, Venerable Pauline Jaricot and other saints changed our lives and brought us closer to Christ.

In our work in the Universal Living Rosary Association, we see first hand how millions of souls are currently living without that knowledge of God and are living outside of His grace. We have been given a beautiful opportunity to carry out Christ’s work and pass on our faith and blessings to others who would otherwise never be introduced to Our Lord, the Savior of all mankind. Just as we pray for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them, we should also make it a part of our life’s mission to pass on our faith to as many souls as possible who have no one else to pass it on to them, who don’t know Our Lord and His promise of salvation.

This is the box we send out to the foreign Missi4 lb. box @ $53 (in place of $42.70), 20 lb. box @ $95 (in place of $86.25), 1 lb. package @ $22 (in place of $20)7.95. It contains Rosaries, Scapulars, Miraculous Medals, Cord & Oil, Newsletters, Calendars, Catechism books, 2 TAN books, large color prints, lists and encouragement for our Promoters.

Please Click here to Share Your Gift of Faith